Anikin A. A. The definition of “little man” is a true long-liver in school and university literary criticism. Devoid of scientific dryness, it is also convenient for exam topics. Therefore, it is natural that a certain semantic and emotional stereotype has developed that accompanies this expression. Even the literary heroes themselves openly recommend themselves this way: “I, sir, am a little man” (Kuligin from A.N. Ostrovsky’s play “The Thunderstorm”), with the natural addition: “You can offend me!” This, it would seem, is the whole simple meaning of this name. But this is clearly a crafty simplicity, which, due to its many years, or even centuries of existence, turns out to be completely unproductive both for literary analysis and for living, explanatory writing. This apparent simplicity is aggravated by the fact that the image of the “little man”, out of compassion or something, is usually made younger: good, when his pedigree is traced back to “ Poor Lisa» N.M. Karamzin, otherwise they’ll throw back another half century and give N.V. as a “father.” Gogol with the story “The Overcoat”. If we look impartially, not through established dogmas, we will see a different picture. First, not every poor person depicted will respond to this theme. The same Kuligin is filled with such pretentious pathos that the definition of “little man” is more a mask than authenticity. He wants to “command thunder with his mind,” he will reject all natural laws and invent the “perpeta mobile,” the notorious perpetual motion machine, a symbol of human pride; he sees himself as a rich man, the owner of a million, a judge and benefactor of the people, almost a mouthpiece of God (in the final remark “she is now before a judge who is more merciful than you”), and it is hardly possible to “offend” him: they are too annoying and defiant to him demands to “finance” it, Kuligin’s inventive whims... Secondly, already from Kuligin’s short assessment it is clear that the content of the image with the “little man” emblem is far from monotonous, rather paradoxical, and this is what makes this topic interesting and lively, despite known costs of any stable expression. In short, the prevailing pattern is that the “little man” is viewed as a victim of one or another social relationship: if he is good (let’s say, like Samson Vyrin), then society unfairly keeps him in the fourteenth, last class; if he is bad, like ninth-grade official Akakiy Bashmachkin, then society is to blame for his shortcomings (remember that N.G. Chernyshevsky called Akakiy Akakievich nothing less than an “idiot”: “a complete ignoramus and a complete idiot, incapable of anything” , 5, 323). To discuss a topic in such a spirit is not only vulgar or uninteresting, but the main thing is that it does not mean understanding the text, but fitting it into an ideological scheme that remains tenacious, despite the seeming change of social ideologies. So, in the future we will turn to the same images of Pushkin and Gogol, but we will emphasize that building social protection their heroes are not included author's position, and this, however, does not at all negate the motive of compassion: the authors see their heroes not in socio-political coordinates, but rather put them before God, before eternity, before the essence of human existence (vivid symbolic episodes: the parable of prodigal son, choosing a name, death and transformation, etc.).
The image of the “little man” in Russian literature
The very concept of “little man” appears in literature before the type of hero itself takes shape. At first, this was a designation for people of the third estate, which became of interest to writers due to the democratization of literature.
In the 19th century, the image of the “little man” became one of the cross-cutting themes of literature. The concept of “little man” was introduced by V.G. Belinsky in his 1840 article “Woe from Wit.” Originally it meant a “simple” person. With the development of psychologism in Russian literature, this image becomes more complex psychological picture and becomes the most popular character in democratic works of the second half XIX century.
Literary Encyclopedia:
“Little Man” is a number of diverse characters in Russian literature of the 19th century, united by common characteristics: low position in the social hierarchy, poverty, insecurity, which determines the peculiarities of their psychology and the plot role - victims of social injustice and a soulless state mechanism, often personified in the image "significant person" They are characterized by fear of life, humility, meekness, which, however, can be combined with a feeling of injustice of the existing order of things, with wounded pride and even a short-term rebellious impulse, which, as a rule, does not lead to a change in the current situation. The type of “little man”, discovered by A. S. Pushkin (“The Bronze Horseman”, “The Station Agent”) and N. V. Gogol (“The Overcoat”, “Notes of a Madman”), is creative and sometimes polemical in relation to tradition , rethought by F. M. Dostoevsky (Makar Devushkin, Golyadkin, Marmeladov), A. N. Ostrovsky (Balzaminov, Kuligin), A. P. Chekhov (Chervyakov from “The Death of an Official,” the hero of “Thick and Thin”), M. A. Bulgakov (Korotkov from “The Diaboliad”), M. M. Zoshchenko and other Russian writers of the 19-20 centuries.
“The little man” is a type of hero in literature, most often he is a poor, inconspicuous official occupying a small position, whose fate is tragic.
The theme of the “little man” is a “cross-cutting theme” of Russian literature. The appearance of this image is due to the Russian career ladder of fourteen steps, at the bottom of which petty officials, poorly educated, often single or burdened with families, worthy of human understanding, worked and suffered from poverty, lack of rights and insults, each with their own misfortune.
Little people are not rich, invisible, their fate is tragic, they are defenseless.
Pushkin "Station Warden". Samson Vyrin.
Hard worker. Weak person. He loses his daughter and is taken away by the rich hussar Minsky. Social conflict. Humiliated. Can't stand up for himself. Got drunk. Samson was lost in life.
One of the first to put forward the democratic theme of the “little man” in literature was Pushkin. In “Belkin’s Tales,” completed in 1830, the writer paints not only pictures of the life of the nobility (“The Young Lady-Peasant”), but also draws the readers’ attention to the fate of the “little man.”
The fate of the “little man” is shown here realistically for the first time, without sentimental tearfulness, without romantic exaggeration, shown as a result of certain historical conditions, the injustice of social relations.
In the plot itself " Stationmaster» a typical social conflict is conveyed, a broad generalization of reality revealed in an individual case is expressed tragic fate ordinary man Samson Vyrin.
There is a small postal station somewhere at the crossroads of roads. Here live 14th grade official Samson Vyrin and his daughter Dunya - the only joy that brightens up the difficult life of a caretaker, full of shouts and curses from passers-by. But the hero of the story, Samson Vyrin, is quite happy and calm, he has long adapted to the conditions of service, his beautiful daughter Dunya helps him run a simple household. He dreams of simple human happiness, hoping to babysit his grandchildren and spend his old age with his family. But fate is preparing a difficult test for him. A passing hussar, Minsky, takes Dunya away without thinking about the consequences of his action.
The worst thing is that Dunya left with the hussar of her own free will. Having crossed the threshold of a new, rich life, she abandoned her father. Samson Vyrin goes to St. Petersburg to “return the lost sheep,” but he is kicked out of Dunya’s house. The hussar "grabbed the old man by the collar with a strong hand and pushed him onto the stairs." Unhappy father! How can he compete with a rich hussar! In the end, he receives several banknotes for his daughter. “Tears welled up in his eyes again, tears of indignation! He squeezed the pieces of paper into a ball, threw them on the ground, stamped them with his heel and walked ... "
Vyrin was no longer able to fight. He “thought, waved his hand and decided to retreat.” Samson, after the loss of his beloved daughter, became lost in life, drank himself to death and died in longing for his daughter, grieving over her possible pitiable fate.
About people like him, Pushkin writes at the beginning of the story: “We will, however, be fair, we will try to enter into their position and, perhaps, we will begin to judge them much more leniently.”
The truth of life, sympathy for the “little man”, insulted at every step by bosses higher in rank and position - this is what we feel when reading the story. Pushkin cares about this “little man” who lives in grief and need. The story, which so realistically depicts the “little man,” is imbued with democracy and humanity.
Pushkin "The Bronze Horseman". Eugene
Evgeniy is a “little man.” The city played a fatal role in fate. Loses his fiancée during a flood. All his dreams and hopes for happiness were lost. Lost my mind. In sick madness, the Nightmare challenges the “idol on a bronze horse”: the threat of death under the bronze hooves.
The image of Evgeniy embodies the idea of confrontation common man and states.
“The poor man was not afraid for himself.” "The blood boiled." “A flame ran through my heart,” “It’s for you!” Evgeny’s protest is an instant impulse, but stronger than Samson Vyrin’s.
The image of a shining, lively, lush city is replaced in the first part of the poem by a picture of a terrible, destructive flood, expressive images of a raging element over which man has no control. Among those whose lives were destroyed by the flood is Eugene, whose peaceful concerns the author speaks of at the beginning of the first part of the poem. Evgeny is an “ordinary man” (“little” man): he has neither money nor rank, “serves somewhere” and dreams of setting up a “humble and simple shelter” for himself in order to marry the girl he loves and go through life’s journey with her.
…Our hero
Lives in Kolomna, serves somewhere,
Avoids nobles...
He does not make great plans for the future; he is satisfied with a quiet, inconspicuous life.
What was he thinking about? About,
That he was poor, that he worked hard
He had to deliver to himself
Both independence and honor;
What could God add to him?
Mind and money.
The poem does not indicate the hero's surname or his age; nothing is said about Eugene's past, his appearance, or character traits. Having deprived Evgeny of his individual characteristics, the author turns him into an ordinary, typical person from the crowd. However, in an extreme, critical situation, Eugene seems to awaken from a dream, and throws off the guise of a “nonentity” and opposes the “brass idol”. In a state of madness, he threatens the Bronze Horseman, considering the man who built the city on this ruinous place to be the culprit of his misfortune.
Pushkin looks at his heroes from the outside. They do not stand out for their intelligence or their position in society, but they are kind and decent people, and therefore worthy of respect and sympathy.
Conflict
Pushkin for the first time in Russian literature showed all the tragedy and intractability of the conflict between the state and state interests and the interests of the private individual.
Plot-wise, the poem is completed, the hero died, but the central conflict remained and was conveyed to the readers, unresolved in reality itself, the antagonism of the “upper” and “lower”, the autocratic government and the dispossessed people remained. Symbolic victory Bronze Horseman over Eugene - a victory of strength, but not justice.
Gogol “The Overcoat” Akaki Akikievich Bashmachkin
"The Eternal Titular Advisor." Resignedly endures the ridicule of his colleagues, timid and lonely. Poor spiritual life. The author's irony and compassion. The image of a city that is scary for the hero. Social conflict: “little man” and the soulless representative of power “significant person”. The element of fantasy (ghost) is the motive of rebellion and retribution.
Gogol opens to the reader the world of “little people”, officials in his “Petersburg Tales”. The story “The Overcoat” is especially significant for revealing this topic; Gogol had a great influence on the further movement of Russian literature, “echoing” Dostoevsky in the works of its most diverse figures and Shchedrin to Bulgakov and Sholokhov. “We all came out of Gogol’s overcoat,” wrote Dostoevsky.
Akaki Akakievich Bashmachkin - “eternal titular adviser.” He meekly endures the ridicule of his colleagues, he is timid and lonely. The senseless clerical work killed every living thought in him. His spiritual life is meager. He finds his only pleasure in copying papers. He lovingly wrote out the letters in a clean, even handwriting and completely immersed himself in his work, forgetting the insults caused to him by his colleagues, and the need, and worries about food and comfort. Even at home, he only thought that “God will send something to rewrite tomorrow.”
But the man in this downtrodden official also woke up when the goal of life appeared - a new overcoat. The development of the image is observed in the story. “He somehow became more lively, even stronger in character. Doubt and indecision naturally disappeared from his face and from his actions...” Bashmachkin does not part with his dream for a single day. He thinks about it like another person thinks about love, about family. So he orders himself a new overcoat, “... his existence has somehow become fuller...” The description of the life of Akaki Akakievich is permeated with irony, but there is also pity and sadness in it. Taking us into spiritual world of the hero, describing his feelings, thoughts, dreams, joys and sorrows, the author makes it clear what happiness the acquisition of the overcoat was for Bashmachkin and what a disaster its loss turns into.
There was no happier person than Akaki Akakievich when the tailor brought him an overcoat. But his joy was short-lived. When he was returning home at night, he was robbed. And none of those around him takes part in his fate. In vain did Bashmachkin seek help from a “significant person.” He was even accused of rebelling against his superiors and “higher ones.” The upset Akaki Akakievich catches a cold and dies.
In the finale, a small, timid person, driven to despair by the world of the powerful, protests against this world. Dying, he “blasphemes” and utters the most terrible words that follow the words “your excellency.” It was a riot, albeit in a dying delirium.
It is not because of the overcoat that the “little man” dies. He becomes a victim of bureaucratic “inhumanity” and “ferocious rudeness,” which, as Gogol argued, lurks under the guise of “refined, educated secularism.” This is the deepest meaning of the story.
The theme of rebellion finds expression in the fantastic image of a ghost that appears on the streets of St. Petersburg after the death of Akaki Akakievich and takes off the overcoats of the offenders.
N.V. Gogol, who in his story “The Overcoat” for the first time shows the spiritual stinginess and squalor of poor people, but also draws attention to the ability of the “little man” to rebel and for this purpose introduces elements of fantasy into his work.
N.V. Gogol deepens the social conflict: the writer showed not only the life of the “little man”, but also his protest against injustice. Even if this “rebellion” is timid, almost fantastic, the hero stands for his rights, against the foundations of the existing order.
Dostoevsky “Crime and Punishment” Marmeladov
The writer himself noted: “We all came out of Gogol’s “Overcoat.”
Dostoevsky’s novel is imbued with the spirit of Gogol’s “The Overcoat” "Poor people And". This is a story about the fate of the same “little man”, crushed by grief, despair and social lack of rights. The correspondence of the poor official Makar Devushkin with Varenka, who has lost her parents and is being pursued by a pimp, reveals the deep drama of the lives of these people. Makar and Varenka are ready to endure any hardship for each other. Makar, living in extreme need, helps Varya. And Varya, having learned about Makar’s situation, comes to his aid. But the heroes of the novel are defenseless. Their rebellion is a “revolt on their knees.” Nobody can help them. Varya is taken away to certain death, and Makar is left alone with his grief. The lives of two are broken and crippled wonderful people, broken by cruel reality.
Dostoevsky reveals the deep and strong experiences of “little people”.
It is interesting to note that Makar Devushkin reads “The Station Agent” by Pushkin and “The Overcoat” by Gogol. He is sympathetic to Samson Vyrin and hostile to Bashmachkin. Probably because he sees his future in him.
About the fate of the “little man” Semyon Semyonovich Marmeladov was told by F.M. Dostoevsky on the pages of the novel "Crime and Punishment". One after another, the writer reveals to us pictures of hopeless poverty. Dostoevsky chose the dirtiest part of strictly St. Petersburg as the location for the action. Against the backdrop of this landscape, the life of the Marmeladov family unfolds before us.
If in Chekhov the characters are humiliated and do not realize their insignificance, then in Dostoevsky the drunken retired official fully understands his uselessness and uselessness. He is a drunkard, an insignificant person from his point of view, who wants to improve, but cannot. He understands that he has doomed his family, and especially his daughter, to suffering, he worries about this, despises himself, but cannot help himself. “To pity! Why pity me!” Marmeladov suddenly screamed, standing up with his hand outstretched... “Yes! There’s nothing to pity me for! Crucify me on the cross, not pity him! But crucify him, judge, crucify him, and, having crucified him, have pity on him!”
Dostoevsky creates the image of a real fallen man: Marmelad’s annoying sweetness, clumsy florid speech - the property of a beer tribune and a jester at the same time. Awareness of his baseness (“I am a born beast”) only strengthens his bravado. He is disgusting and pathetic at the same time, this drunkard Marmeladov with his florid speech and important bureaucratic bearing.
The mental state of this petty official is much more complex and subtle than that of his literary predecessors - Pushkin's Samson Vyrin and Gogol's Bashmachkin. They do not have the power of self-analysis that Dostoevsky's hero achieved. Marmeladov not only suffers, but also analyzes his state of mind, he, as a doctor, makes a merciless diagnosis of the disease - degradation of his own personality. This is how he confesses in his first meeting with Raskolnikov: “Dear sir, poverty is not a vice, it is the truth. But...poverty is a vice - p. In poverty you still retain all the nobility of your innate feelings, but in poverty no one ever does... for in poverty I am the first to be ready to insult myself.”
A person not only dies from poverty, but understands how spiritually he is becoming empty: he begins to despise himself, but does not see anything around him to cling to that would keep him from the disintegration of his personality. The ending of Marmeladov’s life is tragic: on the street he was run over by a dandy gentleman’s carriage drawn by a pair of horses. Throwing himself at their feet, this man himself found the outcome of his life.
Under the writer's pen, Marmeladov becomes tragically. Marmeladov’s cry - “after all, it is necessary that every person can go somewhere at least” - expresses the final degree of despair of a dehumanized person and reflects the essence of his life drama: there is nowhere to go and no one to go to.
In the novel, Raskolnikov has compassion for Marmeladov. The meeting with Marmeladov in the tavern, his feverish, delirious confession gave the main character of the novel, Raskolnikov, one of the last proofs of the correctness of the “Napoleonic idea.” But not only Raskolnikov has compassion for Marmeladov. “They’ve already felt sorry for me more than once,” Marmeladov says to Raskolnikov. The good general Ivan Afanasyevich took pity on him and accepted him into service again. But Marmeladov could not stand the test, started drinking again, drank away his entire salary, drank it all away and in return received a tattered tailcoat with a single button. Marmeladov in his behavior reached the point of losing the last human qualities. He is already so humiliated that he does not feel like a human being, but only dreams of being a human among people. Sonya Marmeladova understands this and forgives her father, who is able to help her neighbor and sympathize with someone who so needs compassion
Dostoevsky makes us feel sorry for those unworthy of pity, to feel compassion for those unworthy of compassion. “Compassion is the most important and, perhaps, the only law of human existence,” Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky believed.
Chekhov "Death of an Official", "Thick and Thin"
Later, Chekhov would draw a unique conclusion to the development of the theme; he doubted the virtues traditionally sung by Russian literature - the high moral virtues of the “little man” - a petty official. Voluntary groveling, self-abasement of the “little man” - this is the turn of the theme proposed by A.P. Chekhov. If Chekhov “exposed” something in people, then, first of all, their ability and willingness to be “small”. A person should not, does not dare, make himself “small” - this is Chekhov’s main idea in his interpretation of the theme of the “little man.” Summarizing all that has been said, we can conclude that the theme of the “little man” reveals the most important qualities of Russian literature XIX century - democracy and humanism.
Over time, the “little man,” deprived of his own dignity, “humiliated and insulted,” arouses not only compassion but also condemnation among progressive writers. “You live a boring life, gentlemen,” Chekhov said through his work to the “little man” who had come to terms with his situation. With subtle humor, the writer ridicules the death of Ivan Chervyakov, from whose lips the lackey “Yourness” has never left his lips.
In the same year as “The Death of an Official,” the story “Thick and Thin” appears. Chekhov again speaks out against philistinism, against servility. The collegiate servant Porfiry giggles, “like a Chinese,” bowing obsequiously, upon meeting his ex-friend who has a high rank. The feeling of friendship that connected these two people has been forgotten.
Kuprin “Garnet Bracelet”. Zheltkov
In A.I. Kuprin’s “Garnet Bracelet” Zheltkov is a “little man”. Once again the hero belongs to the lower class. But he loves, and he loves in a way that many of us are not capable of. high society. Zheltkov fell in love with the girl and all his later life he loved only her alone. He understood that love is sublime feeling, this is a chance given to him by fate, and it should not be missed. His love is his life, his hope. Zheltkov commits suicide. But after the death of the hero, the woman realizes that no one loved her as much as he did. Kuprin's hero is a man of an extraordinary soul, capable of self-sacrifice, able to truly love, and such a gift is rare. Therefore, the “little man” Zheltkov appears as a figure towering above those around him.
Thus, the theme of the “little man” underwent significant changes in the work of writers. Drawing images of “little people”, writers usually emphasized their weak protest, downtroddenness, which subsequently leads the “little man” to degradation. But each of these heroes has something in life that helps him endure existence: Samson Vyrin has a daughter, the joy of life, Akaky Akakievich has an overcoat, Makar Devushkin and Varenka have their love and care for each other. Having lost this goal, they die, unable to survive the loss.
In conclusion, I would like to say that a person should not be small. In one of his letters to his sister, Chekhov exclaimed: “My God, how rich Russia is in good people!”
In XX century, the theme was developed in the images of the heroes I. Bunin, A. Kuprin, M. Gorky and even at the end XX century, you can find its reflection in the works of V. Shukshin, V. Rasputin and other writers.
The problem of the “little man” in the works of writers of the 1840s was not a new phenomenon in general for Russian literature.
Domestic writers XVIII - early XIX centuries could not ignore the suffering of little ones in their own way social status and importance in the huge hierarchical state of people, those who were sometimes undeservedly humiliated and offended. The theme of the “poor official,” which later evolved into the theme of the “little man” in its traditional understanding, originated in Russian literature back in the 17th century (“The Tale of Frol Skobeev”), and was outlined in the Russian novel of the 18th century and the story of the early 19th century. Meanwhile, the concept of “little man” was firmly attached to the heroes of works of the 1840s.
The literary type of the “little man” developed in Russian prose of 1830-1840. For its time, this type of literary hero was a kind of revolution in the understanding and depiction of man. And indeed, the “little man” was not like the exceptional romantic heroes who preceded him with their complex spiritual world [Murzak, 2007, p. 1].
This type of hero is born in the era of sentimentalism. The social source for the development of the image of the “little man” in Russian literature was undoubtedly the third estate, which consisted of various kinds of impoverished nobles, former students and seminarians, and later burghers seeking to establish themselves in the status of prosperous and trustworthy citizens through the acquisition of nobility. It is no coincidence that H.A. Berdyaev spoke about the great gulf that formed in the 18th century between the upper stratum and the people. While the lower and uppermost strata in Russia (the peasantry and nobility) were relatively stable, the middle class - the most mobile part of the population, cut off from its roots and despising these very roots, sought to penetrate the upper strata of society. This process was reflected in the literature of the 40s of the 19th century.
For the first time in the history of criticism, the concept of “little man” appears in an article by V.G. Belinsky “Woe from Wit” (1840) when analyzing the image of the mayor in Gogol’s “The Inspector General”: “Our mayor become a general - and when he lives in county town, woe to the little man, if he, who considers himself “not having the honor of being acquainted with Mr. General,” does not bow to him or give up his seat at the ball, even if this little man was preparing to be a great man!.. then the comedy could come out tragedy for the “little man” [Ibid. p. 3-4].
In the article “Russian Literature in 1845,” the critic speaks of Gogol as the founder of a new direction in Russian literature. Belinsky gives the author of “The Overcoat,” the creator of the sample story about the “little man,” an honorable place among his younger brothers in the pen, those who paid attention to the “crowd.” “If we were asked what the essential merit of the new literary school is,” writes Vissarion Grigorievich, “we would answer: precisely for what it is attacked by short-sighted mediocrity or base envy, in the fact that from the highest ideals of human nature and In life, she turned to the so-called “crowd”, exclusively chose it as her hero, studies it with deep attention and introduces it to herself. This meant finally achieving the aspiration of our literature, which wanted to become completely national, Russian, original and original.”
Despite the fact that Belinsky was guided in articles of the early 1840s to a greater extent aesthetic considerations (he contrasted the sentimental and romantic image of reality with a new image of reality), the image of the “little man” acquires a more definite meaning. This is a man of the crowd, socially oppressed, poor, and therefore in need of the sympathy and attention of society. In the article “Russian Literature in 1847,” the critic develops a previously expressed idea: “Former poets also presented pictures of poverty, but neat, washed poverty, expressed modestly and nobly; Moreover, at the end of the story, a sensitive young lady or maiden, the daughter of rich parents, or sometimes a beneficent young man always appeared, and in the name of a sweet or sweet heart they established contentment and happiness where there was poverty and misery, and grateful tears watered the beneficent hand - and the reader involuntarily brought his cambric handkerchief to his eyes and felt that he was becoming kinder and more sensitive. And now! - look what they write now! The men are in bast shoes and sheepskin coats, they often smell like fusel, the woman is a kind of Centauri, you can’t suddenly tell by the clothes what gender the creature is; the corners are refuges of poverty, despair and depravity, which must be reached through a knee-deep dirty yard; some drunkard - a clerk or a seminarian teacher expelled from service - all this is copied from life, in the nakedness of a terrible truth, so if you read it, expect difficult dreams at night.” [Belinsky, 1898, p. 16].
Of course, in the concept of “crowd” Belinsky included quite diverse social classes (from a janitor to a petty employee of the bourgeois or noble rank), united, however, by one thing: a miserable existence and low social status. This understanding of the “little man” was fully consistent with literary reality. Writers of the 40s of the 19th century, belonging to the “natural school,” flooded Russian literature with organ grinders, janitors, peasants, inhabitants of city shelters, poor artists and others.
“Little people” work in some department and dream of career growth. It should be noted that the bureaucratic world was depicted in a very diverse way: there were stories where the poor official not only suffered, but also made a successful career thanks to his resourcefulness and ability to adapt.
Thus, in the 19th century, the concept of “little man” was quite broad. Writers of the 1840s did not put into it the meaning that would be attached to it later. Only in Soviet literary criticism did the concept of “little man” become identical to a petty St. Petersburg official. This is, first of all, an official of the Nikolaev period. Then his social address expanded, and the “little man” began to be understood as generally a poor person occupying low levels in the social hierarchy [Berdnikov, 1989, p. 414].
For the first time, Russian literature so poignantly and clearly showed the distortion of personality by an environment hostile to it. For the first time, it was possible not only to dramatically depict contradictory human behavior, but also to condemn the evil and inhuman forces of society.
Karamzin in “Poor Liza” embodied the main thesis of sentimentalism about the extra-class value of a person - “even peasant women know how to love.” Social inequality and natural complexity human soul becomes an obstacle to happiness main character. The girl’s fate takes shape against the backdrop of the dramatic history of Russia. The classical scheme, which extremely expressively reveals the character of the “little man” in the works of sentimentalism, is practically unchanged: the idyllic pictures of the life of “natural people” are disrupted by the invasion of representatives of a vicious civilization.
A new impetus was given to the specified type realistic literature. “Belkin’s Tales” by Pushkin, “The Overcoat” by Gogol, “Poor People” by Dostoevsky, and Chekhov’s stories presented the type of “little man” in a multifaceted way. Writers artistically formed the characterological characteristics of a literary type: ordinary appearance, age from thirty to fifty years; limited existential possibilities; the wretchedness of material existence; the hero’s conflict with a high-ranking official or offender; the collapse of your life's dreams; spontaneous rebellion of the character; tragic outcome [Berkowski, 1962, p.329]
Of course, one of the creators of the “little man” type is A. Pushkin. M. Bakhtin absolutely accurately noted that Belinsky “overlooked” Samson Vyrin, saying that N. Gogol is the founder of the “little man” theme.
Pushkin deliberately moves away from depicting the social arguments of the tragedy of the unfortunate official and creates a utopian picture of relations between representatives of different strata, which is not devoid of sentimentality. Be that as it may, the psychology of the “little man” was outlined by Pushkin in all the evidence of his social existence. An equally significant aspect of the topic is the analysis of dramatic family relationships.
The significance of the theme of the “little man” for Pushkin was not in exposing the downtroddenness of the hero, but in the discovery in the “little man” of a compassionate and sensitive soul, endowed with the gift of responding to someone else’s misfortune and someone else’s pain.
Pushkin’s concept becomes the source of subsequent literary generalizations, predetermines the stories of Dostoevsky and Tolstoy about “unhappy families”, conflict situations where “each family is unhappy in its own way.”
The “little man” becomes the dominant type in the “natural school.” L. Lotman wrote that “the man appeared to the writers natural school a cast of a social form that distorts human nature.”
Further evolution The literary type of the “little man” is associated with a shift in emphasis, according to Bakhtin, “from the environment to the person.” Already in early work“Poor People” Dostoevsky focuses on the spiritual world of the hero, although dependence on social circumstances still determines the misfortunes of Makar Devushkin. Dobrolyubov in the article “Downtrodden People” noted: “In the works of Dostoevsky we find common feature, more or less noticeable in everything he wrote: this is pain about a person who recognizes himself as unable or, finally, not even entitled to be a real, complete person, an independent person, on their own." [Dobrolyubov, 1986, p. 12].
The novel “Poor People” combines two views on the “little man” - Pushkin’s and Gogol’s; Makar Devushkin, after reading both stories, comes to the conclusion that we are all “Vyrina’s Samsons.” This calling indicates a dramatic discovery - the tragedy is predetermined, there is no way to fight circumstances that are insurmountable. Dostoevsky’s famous phrase: “We all came out of Gogol’s Overcoat” - implies not so much apprenticeship as the continuation and development of the theme of mercy, immeasurable love for a person rejected by society.
Dostoevsky represents the type of dreamer who is content with little, and all his actions are dictated by the fear of losing the modest gift of fate.
Dostoevsky reconsiders the famous type romantic hero who plunges into the world perfect dream, despising reality. Dostoevsky's heroes doomedly preach humility in life, which leads them to death.
A. Chekhov closes the circle of writers who touched upon the problem of the “little man”. He does not express compassion for the “little man,” but shows the real “smallness” of his soul.
Chekhov proved with all his creativity that a person should not conform to the boundaries allowed by society. The spiritual needs of the individual must triumph over vulgarity and insignificance: “a person needs not three arshins of land, but the entire globe.”
The writer rightly noted that a person must have a goal to achieve which he will strive, and if there is none or it is completely small and insignificant, then the person becomes just as small and insignificant.
Thus, the theme of the “little man” has undergone significant changes in the work of writers since its inception. It is very important for understanding all Russian literature, since in the 20th century it was developed in the images of the heroes I. Bunin, A. Kuprin, M. Gorky, and even at the end of the 20th century one can find its reflection in the works of V. Shukshin, V. Rasputin and other writers.
1.2. general characteristics"little man" type
“The Little Man” is a literary hero of the era of realism, occupying a rather low position in the social hierarchy: an official, a tradesman, or even a poor nobleman. The hero is quite poor and unprotected, which determines the peculiarity of his psychology and the plot role - a victim of social injustice and a soulless state mechanism, often personified in the image of a “significant person.” “Little people” are characterized by fear of life, humility, and meekness, which, however, can be combined with a feeling of injustice of the existing order of things, with wounded pride and even a short-term rebellious impulse, which, as a rule, does not lead to a change in the current situation. The spiritual world of such a hero is meager and uninteresting. However, the authors of works about “little people” portrayed them from a humanistic perspective, emphasizing that even such a pitiful, defenseless and powerless creature is worthy of respect and compassion. [Sokolov, 2000, p. 263].
The development of the “little man” type was literary type a “humiliated and insulted” person, who is most clearly represented in the works of Dostoevsky.
The type of “humiliated and insulted” became Dostoevsky’s true artistic discovery. In his portrayal, petty officials, students, unhappy women and children from the bottom of society are proud people who think deeply.
The image of the “little man” turned out to be more and more relevant the more democratic literature became.
The theme of the “little man” is raised by many classics of Russian literature. It has always been relevant because its task is to reflect the life of an ordinary person with all its experiences, problems, troubles and little joys. The writer takes on the hard work of showing and explaining the lives of ordinary people. The “little man” is a representative of the people as a whole. And every writer presents it differently.
What is a “little man”? In what sense is “small”? This person is small precisely in social terms, since he occupies one of the lower steps of the hierarchical ladder. His place in society is little or not noticeable. This man is also “small” because the world of his spiritual life and human aspirations is also extremely narrowed, impoverished, surrounded by all sorts of prohibitions. For him, for example, there are no historical and philosophical problems. He remains in a narrow and closed circle of his life interests.
People forgotten by everyone and humiliated have never attracted the attention of others. Their life, their little joys and big troubles seemed insignificant to everyone, unworthy of attention. The era produced such people and such an attitude towards them. Cruel times and tsarist injustice forced the “little people” to withdraw into themselves, to withdraw completely into their souls, which had suffered, with the painful problems of that period; they lived an unnoticed life and also died unnoticed. But it was precisely such people at some point, by the will of circumstances, obeying the cry of the soul, who began to fight against powerful of the world This, calling for justice, ceased to be nothing. Therefore, writers of the late 17th - 19th centuries turned their attention to them. With each work, the life of people of the “lower” class was shown more and more clearly and truthfully. Little officials, stationmasters, “little people” who had gone crazy, against their own will, began to emerge from the shadows [Kataev, 1998, pp. 5-6].
Interest in the “little man”, his fate and pain for him are constantly and repeatedly observed in the works of great Russian writers.
“The Little Man” is certainly a dramatic character, but he may also have comic features. The comic in the “little man” only emphasizes and reveals the depth of drama of this image. The problem of human dignity of “little people” is closely related to the problem of rank.
The theme of the “little man” presupposes both a certain development of the plot, which is usually constructed as a story of catastrophe, misfortune or resentment, and the presence of a specific conflict: “little man” - “privileged person”. The depiction of the tragedy of the “little man” is most often associated with attention to the social atmosphere, since it is this that determines the tragedy of the situation of the “poor people”.
The definition of "little man" applies to the category literary heroes era of realism, usually occupying a rather low place in the social hierarchy: a minor official, a tradesman or even a poor nobleman. The image of the “little man” turned out to be more and more relevant the more democratic literature became. The very concept of “little man” was most likely introduced into use by V.G. Belinsky Belinsky V.G. "Woe from Wit." Comedy in four acts, in verse. Essay by A.S. Griboedova. // A.S. Griboyedov in Russian criticism: Collection of articles. / Comp., intro. Art. and note. A.M. Gordina. - M., 1958. - P.111..
The theme of the “little man” is raised by many writers. It has always been relevant because its task is to reflect the life of an ordinary person with all its experiences, problems, troubles and little joys. The writer takes on the hard work of showing and explaining the lives of ordinary people. The “little man” is a representative of the people as a whole. And each writer presents it in his own way Krasukhin K. Ranks and awards of characters in Russian literature // Literature (PS). - 2004. - No. 11. - P. 9..
What is a “little man”? In what sense is “small”? This person is small precisely in social terms, since he occupies one of the lower steps of the hierarchical ladder. His place in society is little or not noticeable. This man is also “small” because the world of his spiritual life and human aspirations is also extremely narrowed, impoverished, surrounded by all kinds of prohibitions and taboos. For him, for example, there are no historical and philosophical problems. He remains in a narrow and closed circle of his life interests.
People forgotten by everyone and humiliated have never attracted the attention of others. Their life, their little joys and big troubles seemed insignificant to everyone, unworthy of attention. The era produced such people and such an attitude towards them. Cruel times and tsarist injustice forced the “little people” to withdraw into themselves, to withdraw completely into their souls, which had suffered, with the painful problems of that period; they lived an unnoticed life and also died unnoticed. But it was precisely such people at some point, by the will of circumstances, obeying the cry of the soul, who began to fight against the powers that be, to cry out for justice, and ceased to be nothing. Therefore, writers of the late 17th - 19th centuries turned their attention to them. With each work, the life of people of the “lower” class was shown more and more clearly and truthfully. Little officials, stationmasters, “little people” who had gone mad against their own free will began to emerge from the shadows.
Interest in the “little man”, in his fate and pain for him is constantly and repeatedly observed in the works of the great Russian writers Nabati Sh. The theme of “little man” in the story “The Overcoat” by N.V. Gogol and in the story “Cow” by G. Saedi // Bulletin of the development of science and education. - 2011. - No. 3. - P.103..
Among Russian writers A.S. Pushkin was one of the first to put forward the theme of the “little man” in Russian literature.
A.S. Pushkin in “Belkin's Tales” focuses on the fate of the “little man,” whom he tried to portray objectively, without idealization. In these stories, unlike many other works of that time in Russia, Pushkin began to write and talk about an ordinary, simple person and tried to describe the life of such a person in society.
So, greatest poet XIX century A.S. Pushkin did not leave the theme of the “little man” unnoticed, only he focused his gaze not on the image of the kneeling man, but on the fate of the unfortunate man, showing us his pure soul, unspoiled by wealth and prosperity, who knows how to rejoice, love, suffer, in the story “The Station Agent” , part of the cycle of “Belkin’s Tales”.
A.S. Pushkin sympathizes with his hero. Initially, his life is not easy: “Who hasn’t cursed the stationmasters, who hasn’t scolded them? Who, in a moment of anger, did not demand from them a fatal book in order to write into it his useless complaint about oppression, rudeness and malfunction? Who doesn't consider them monsters? human race, equal to the late clerks or at least the Murom robbers? Let us, however, be fair, we will try to put ourselves in their position and, perhaps, we will begin to judge them much more leniently. What is a stationmaster? A real martyr of the fourteenth class, protected by his rank only from beatings, and even then not always... I have peace neither day nor night. The traveler takes out all the frustration accumulated during a boring ride on the caretaker. The weather is unbearable, the road is bad, the driver is stubborn, the horses are not moving - and the caretaker is to blame. Entering his poor home, a traveler looks at him as if he were an enemy; it would be good if he soon managed to get rid of the uninvited guest; but what if the horses don't happen? God! what curses, what threats will rain down on his head! In the rain and slush, he is forced to run around the yards; in a storm, in the Epiphany frost, he goes into the hallway, just to take a break for a minute from the screams and pushes of an irritated guest... Let’s look into all this thoroughly, and instead of indignation, our hearts will be filled with sincere compassion.” Pushkin A.S. Collection Op.: In 10 volumes. - T.5. - Novels, stories. - M., 1960. - P. 118. .
The hero of the story, Samson Vyrin, remains a happy and calm person for some time. He is accustomed to his service and has a good assistant, his daughter. He dreams of simple happiness, grandchildren, big family, but fate has other plans. Hussar Minsky, while passing through their place, takes his daughter Dunya with him. After an unsuccessful attempt to return his daughter, when the hussar “with a strong hand, grabbed the old man by the collar, pushed him onto the stairs” Ibid. - P. 119., Vyrin was no longer able to fight. And the unfortunate old man dies of melancholy, grieving over the possible pitiable fate of his daughter.
A.S. Pushkin in “The Station Agent” reveals the image of Vyrin in a family tragedy. The caretaker is offended in his fatherly feelings, his human dignity is violated. Vyrin’s struggle with Minsky is to assert the right to a loved one. The development of events is associated with drastic changes in the private lives of the characters. Nevertheless, it would be wrong not to see in Pushkin’s conflict a “reflection social contradictions: private life is determined by legal and property status” Belkind V.S. The image of the “little man” in Pushkin and Dostoevsky (Samson Vyrin and Makar Devushkin) / V.S. Belkind // Pushkin collection. - Pskov, 1968. - P. 142..
From the very first lines, the author introduces us to the powerless world of people in this profession. Every person passing by almost considers it his duty to pour out all the anger accumulated in road troubles on him. However, despite all the difficulties associated with the profession, the caretakers, according to Pushkin, are “... peaceful people, naturally helpful, inclined to live together, modest in their claims to honor and not too money-loving.” This is exactly the kind of person described in the story. Semyon Vyrin is a typical representative of the petty bureaucratic class, he regularly performed his service and had his own “little” happiness - the beautiful daughter Dunya, who remained in his arms after the death of his wife. The clever, friendly Dunyasha became not only the mistress of the house, but also her father’s first assistant in his difficult work. Rejoicing, looking at his daughter, Vyrin probably painted in his imagination pictures of the future, where he, already an old man, lives next to Dunya, who has become a respected wife and mother. But the laws of the era enter into the narrative, when any elder, whether by rank, rank or class, invades the life of the “little man,” sweeping away everything in his path, regardless of other people’s feelings or moral principles. Breaking lives, crippling the souls of people, feeling the protection of others in power or money. This is what Hussar Minsky did to Vyrin, who took Dunya to St. Petersburg. The poor caretaker tries to resist the blows of fate by going in search of his daughter. But in a world where everything is bought and sold, they do not believe sincere, even paternal, feelings. Minsky sends the unfortunate father out.
Fate gave him another chance to see his daughter, but Dunya betrayed her father for the second time, allowing Minsky to push the old man out the door. Even after seeing her father’s grief, she did not repent to him and did not come to him. Devoted and lonely, Vyrin lives out his last days at his station, sad about his daughter. The loss of his daughter deprived the old man of the meaning of life. An indifferent society silently looked at him and hundreds of others like him, and everyone understood that it was stupid to ask the strong for protection for the weak. The destiny of the “little man” is humility. And the stationmaster died from his own helplessness and from the selfish callousness of the society around him.
Professor N.Ya. Berkovsky points out that “Pushkin portrays Samson Vyrin with sympathetic insight into his social personality, with precision in everything that notes how he is positioned in the official, public world” Berkovsky N.Ya. Articles about literature. - M., 1962. - P. 329. However, there is no reason to exaggerate the sociality of Pushkin’s story and turn Vyrin into an active Protestant. This is, first of all, a family story with a relatively happy ending.
Evgeniy, the hero of The Bronze Horseman, looks like Samson Vyrin. The hero lives in Kolomna, serves somewhere, and shuns the nobles. He does not make great plans for the future; he is satisfied with a quiet, inconspicuous life. He also hopes for his personal, albeit small, but much-needed family happiness. But all his dreams are in vain, because evil fate bursts into his life: the elements destroy his beloved. Evgeniy cannot resist fate; he quietly experiences his loss. And only in a state of madness does he threaten the Bronze Horseman, considering the man who built the city on this ruinous place to be the culprit of his misfortune. A.S. Pushkin looks at his heroes from the outside. They do not stand out for their intelligence or their position in society, but they are kind and decent people, and therefore worthy of respect and sympathy.
“The Bronze Horseman” is one of the first works where the author tries to describe the “little man”. Pushkin begins his work odicly. He glorifies the city of Petra, the “greatness” of St. Petersburg, and admires the capital of Russia. In my opinion, the author does this in order to show the power of the capital and everything Russian state. Then the author begins his story. The main character is Eugene, he is an impoverished nobleman, has neither a high rank nor a noble name. Evgeniy lives a calm, measured life, provides for himself by working hard. Evgeniy does not dream of high ranks, he only needs simple human happiness. But grief breaks into this measured course of his life; his beloved dies during a flood. Evgeny, realizing that he is powerless in the face of the elements, still tries to find those to blame for the fact that his hope for happiness has collapsed. And he finds it. Eugene blames Peter I, who built the city in this place, for his troubles, which means he blames the entire state machine, thereby entering into an unequal battle; and Pushkin shows this through the revival of the monument to Peter I. Of course, in this battle Eugene, a weak man, is defeated. Due to enormous grief and inability to fight the state main character is dying.
In the novel “The Captain's Daughter” the category of “little people” includes Pyotr Andreevich Grinev and Captain Mironov. They are distinguished by the same qualities: kindness, justice, decency, the ability to love and respect people. But they have one more thing good quality- stay true to your word. Pushkin included the saying in the epigraph: “Take care of your honor from a young age.” They saved their honor. And so are the roads of A.S. Pushkin, as well as the heroes of his previously mentioned works.
A.S. Pushkin puts forward in them the democratic theme of the little man. This is what he writes in his critical article « Fiction Pushkin” literary critic S.M. Petrov: “Belkin’s Tales” appeared in print as the first realistic work of Russian prose. Along with traditional themes from the life of the nobility and estate (“Young Lady-Peasant”). Pushkin puts forward in them the democratic theme of the little man (the story “The Station Warden”), which precedes N.V.’s “The Overcoat”. Gogol" Petrov S.M. Pushkin's fiction / Collected works of A.S. Pushkin in 10 volumes. - T.5. - M., 1960. - P.6..
“Belkin’s Tales” was a polemical response to A.S. Pushkin on the main trends of contemporary Russian prose. The truthfulness of the image, deep penetration into the character of a person, the absence of any didacticism “The Station Agent” by A.S. Pushkin put an end to the influence of the sentimental-didactic story about a little person like “Poor Liza” by N.M. Karamzin. Idealized images, plot situations deliberately created for didactic purposes in a sentimental story are replaced by real types and everyday pictures, depictions of the true joys and sorrows of life. The deep humanism of the story by A.S. Pushkin confronts the abstract sensitivity of a sentimental story. The mannered language of a sentimental story, falling into moralizing rhetoric, gives way to a simple and ingenuous narrative, like the old caretaker’s story about his Duna. Realism is replacing sentimentalism in Russian prose.
The deep humanism of the story by A.S. Pushkin confronts the abstract sensitivity of a sentimental story. The mannered language of a sentimental story, falling into moralizing rhetoric, gives way to a simple and ingenuous narrative, like the old caretaker’s story about his Duna.
“In reality, Pushkin of the 30s, who more than once sympathetically depicted the life and way of life of “little people”, endowing the latter with warm human feelings, could not at the same time fail to see the limitations, the poverty of the spiritual needs of a petty official, a tradesman, a seedy nobleman. While pitying the “little man,” Pushkin at the same time shows the petty-bourgeois narrowness of his requests.” Blagoy D.D. Creative path Pushkin (1826-1830). - M., 1967. - P. 85..
In a later period, the same Dmitry Blagoy, in his book “The Creative Path of Pushkin,” brings out a new interpretation of the “little man” of the poet - the one who opposes himself to the autocracy: “The deep regularity, the organic nature of the theme of Peter for the post-December Pushkin is convincingly confirmed by the entire further course of his work, in which this theme becomes one of the leading, central themes, filling, as we will later see, with increasingly complex ideological, philosophical and socio-historical content, acquiring an increasingly problematic character, due to the production and artistic development of A.S. Pushkin precisely on this topic of the central issues of his modernity and Russian historical life in general - about the relationship between the state and the individual, autocratic power and a simple “little” person, about the paths of Russian historical development, about the fate of the country, nation, people. It is this issue that will be at the center of such works of Pushkin, related to the theme of Peter, as “The Blackamoor of Peter the Great”, as “Poltava”, as the deepest of the poet’s creations - the “Petersburg story” in verse, “The Bronze Horseman”. The first in this series, as if a condensed, concentrated introduction to everything that follows, is the poem “Stanzas” by Blagoy D.D. The creative path of Pushkin (1826-1830). - M., 1967. - P. 86..
The well-known underestimation of the prose of A.S. Pushkin’s criticism of the 19th century slowed down the comparative historical study of the “little man” type. There are works in Soviet Pushkin studies that address this issue. However, comparative study artistic system prose by A.S. Pushkin in relation to the work of later, subsequent authors (in particular N.V. Gogol and F.M. Dostoevsky) is a problem that has largely not yet been resolved. “This is a big task, as one of the most important, facing our Pushkin studies” Pushkin A.S. Results and problems of the study. - M., 1966. - P. 482..
Thus, A.S. Pushkin, one of the first classics to describe the image of the “little man,” in the early stages of his work tried to show the high spirituality of such characters, as, for example, in the story “The Station Agent.” A.S. Pushkin shows that being a “little man” is a natural and inevitable destiny. Much is revealed to the “little man,” but little is accepted by him; he strives to alleviate his earthly fate, but only incurs even greater suffering; striving for good, does not avoid sin; passes away deeply depressed and awaiting the highest court; Death itself turns out to be more desirable for him than life. At A.S. Pushkin's image of the “little man” is deeply realistic. The question of the behavior of the “Little Man” in the works of A.S. Pushkin is staged sharply and dramatically. Later, his works featured motifs of the transition of the image of the “little man” and merging with the image folk hero- "Songs Western Slavs" For all works by A.S. Pushkin was characterized by a deep penetration into the character of each hero - the “little man”, masterful writing of his portrait, from which not a single feature escaped.
The image of the “little man” in Russian literature
The very concept of “little man” appears in literature before the type of hero itself takes shape. At first, this was a designation for people of the third estate, which became of interest to writers due to the democratization of literature.
In the 19th century, the image of the “little man” became one of the cross-cutting themes of literature. The concept of “little man” was introduced by V.G. Belinsky in his 1840 article “Woe from Wit.” Originally it meant a “simple” person. With the development of psychologism in Russian literature, this image acquires a more complex psychological portrait and becomes the most popular character in democratic works of the second half XIX century.
Literary Encyclopedia:
“Little Man” is a number of diverse characters in Russian literature of the 19th century, united by common characteristics: low position in the social hierarchy, poverty, insecurity, which determines the peculiarities of their psychology and the plot role - victims of social injustice and a soulless state mechanism, often personified in the image "significant person" They are characterized by fear of life, humility, meekness, which, however, can be combined with a feeling of injustice of the existing order of things, with wounded pride and even a short-term rebellious impulse, which, as a rule, does not lead to a change in the current situation. The type of “little man”, discovered by A. S. Pushkin (“The Bronze Horseman”, “The Station Agent”) and N. V. Gogol (“The Overcoat”, “Notes of a Madman”), is creative and sometimes polemical in relation to tradition , rethought by F. M. Dostoevsky (Makar Devushkin, Golyadkin, Marmeladov), A. N. Ostrovsky (Balzaminov, Kuligin), A. P. Chekhov (Chervyakov from “The Death of an Official,” the hero of “Thick and Thin”), M. A. Bulgakov (Korotkov from “The Diaboliad”), M. M. Zoshchenko and other Russian writers of the 19-20 centuries.
“The little man” is a type of hero in literature, most often he is a poor, inconspicuous official occupying a small position, whose fate is tragic.
The theme of the “little man” is a “cross-cutting theme” of Russian literature. The appearance of this image is due to the Russian career ladder of fourteen steps, at the bottom of which petty officials, poorly educated, often single or burdened with families, worthy of human understanding, worked and suffered from poverty, lack of rights and insults, each with their own misfortune.
Little people are not rich, invisible, their fate is tragic, they are defenseless.
Pushkin "Station Warden". Samson Vyrin.
Hard worker. Weak person. He loses his daughter and is taken away by the rich hussar Minsky. Social conflict. Humiliated. Can't stand up for himself. Got drunk. Samson was lost in life.
One of the first to put forward the democratic theme of the “little man” in literature was Pushkin. In “Belkin’s Tales,” completed in 1830, the writer paints not only pictures of the life of the nobility (“The Young Lady-Peasant”), but also draws the readers’ attention to the fate of the “little man.”
The fate of the “little man” is shown here realistically for the first time, without sentimental tearfulness, without romantic exaggeration, shown as a result of certain historical conditions, the injustice of social relations.
The plot of “The Station Agent” itself conveys a typical social conflict and expresses a broad generalization of reality, revealed in the individual case of the tragic fate of an ordinary person, Samson Vyrin.
There is a small postal station somewhere at the crossroads of roads. Here live 14th grade official Samson Vyrin and his daughter Dunya - the only joy that brightens up the difficult life of a caretaker, full of shouts and curses from passers-by. But the hero of the story, Samson Vyrin, is quite happy and calm, he has long adapted to the conditions of service, his beautiful daughter Dunya helps him run a simple household. He dreams of simple human happiness, hoping to babysit his grandchildren and spend his old age with his family. But fate is preparing a difficult test for him. A passing hussar, Minsky, takes Dunya away without thinking about the consequences of his action.
The worst thing is that Dunya left with the hussar of her own free will. Having crossed the threshold of a new, rich life, she abandoned her father. Samson Vyrin goes to St. Petersburg to “return the lost sheep,” but he is kicked out of Dunya’s house. The hussar "grabbed the old man by the collar with a strong hand and pushed him onto the stairs." Unhappy father! How can he compete with a rich hussar! In the end, he receives several banknotes for his daughter. “Tears welled up in his eyes again, tears of indignation! He squeezed the pieces of paper into a ball, threw them on the ground, stamped them with his heel and walked ... "
Vyrin was no longer able to fight. He “thought, waved his hand and decided to retreat.” Samson, after the loss of his beloved daughter, became lost in life, drank himself to death and died in longing for his daughter, grieving over her possible pitiable fate.
About people like him, Pushkin writes at the beginning of the story: “We will, however, be fair, we will try to enter into their position and, perhaps, we will begin to judge them much more leniently.”
The truth of life, sympathy for the “little man”, insulted at every step by bosses higher in rank and position - this is what we feel when reading the story. Pushkin cares about this “little man” who lives in grief and need. The story, which so realistically depicts the “little man,” is imbued with democracy and humanity.
Pushkin "The Bronze Horseman". Eugene
Evgeniy is a “little man.” The city played a fatal role in fate. Loses his fiancée during a flood. All his dreams and hopes for happiness were lost. Lost my mind. In sick madness, the Nightmare challenges the “idol on a bronze horse”: the threat of death under the bronze hooves.
The image of Evgeniy embodies the idea of confrontation between the common man and the state.
“The poor man was not afraid for himself.” "The blood boiled." “A flame ran through my heart,” “It’s for you!” Evgeny’s protest is an instant impulse, but stronger than Samson Vyrin’s.
The image of a shining, lively, lush city is replaced in the first part of the poem by a picture of a terrible, destructive flood, expressive images of a raging element over which man has no control. Among those whose lives were destroyed by the flood is Eugene, whose peaceful concerns the author speaks of at the beginning of the first part of the poem. Evgeny is an “ordinary man” (“little” man): he has neither money nor rank, “serves somewhere” and dreams of setting up a “humble and simple shelter” for himself in order to marry the girl he loves and go through life’s journey with her.
…Our hero
Lives in Kolomna, serves somewhere,
Avoids nobles...
He does not make great plans for the future; he is satisfied with a quiet, inconspicuous life.
What was he thinking about? About,
That he was poor, that he worked hard
He had to deliver to himself
Both independence and honor;
What could God add to him?
Mind and money.
The poem does not indicate the hero's surname or his age; nothing is said about Eugene's past, his appearance, or character traits. Having deprived Evgeny of his individual characteristics, the author turns him into an ordinary, typical person from the crowd. However, in an extreme, critical situation, Eugene seems to awaken from a dream, and throws off the guise of a “nonentity” and opposes the “brass idol”. In a state of madness, he threatens the Bronze Horseman, considering the man who built the city on this ruinous place to be the culprit of his misfortune.
Pushkin looks at his heroes from the outside. They do not stand out for their intelligence or their position in society, but they are kind and decent people, and therefore worthy of respect and sympathy.
Conflict
Pushkin for the first time in Russian literature showed all the tragedy and intractability of the conflict between the state and state interests and the interests of the private individual.
Plot-wise, the poem is completed, the hero died, but the central conflict remained and was conveyed to the readers, unresolved in reality itself, the antagonism of the “upper” and “lower”, the autocratic government and the dispossessed people remained. The symbolic victory of the Bronze Horseman over Eugene is a victory of strength, but not of justice.
Gogol “The Overcoat” Akaki Akikievich Bashmachkin
"The Eternal Titular Advisor." Resignedly endures the ridicule of his colleagues, timid and lonely. Poor spiritual life. The author's irony and compassion. The image of a city that is scary for the hero. Social conflict: “little man” and the soulless representative of power “significant person”. The element of fantasy (ghost) is the motive of rebellion and retribution.
Gogol opens to the reader the world of “little people”, officials in his “Petersburg Tales”. The story “The Overcoat” is especially significant for revealing this topic; Gogol had a great influence on the further movement of Russian literature, “echoing” Dostoevsky in the works of its most diverse figures and Shchedrin to Bulgakov and Sholokhov. “We all came out of Gogol’s overcoat,” wrote Dostoevsky.
Akaki Akakievich Bashmachkin - “eternal titular adviser.” He meekly endures the ridicule of his colleagues, he is timid and lonely. The senseless clerical work killed every living thought in him. His spiritual life is meager. He finds his only pleasure in copying papers. He lovingly wrote out the letters in a clean, even handwriting and completely immersed himself in his work, forgetting the insults caused to him by his colleagues, and the need, and worries about food and comfort. Even at home, he only thought that “God will send something to rewrite tomorrow.”
But the man in this downtrodden official also woke up when the goal of life appeared - a new overcoat. The development of the image is observed in the story. “He somehow became more lively, even stronger in character. Doubt and indecision naturally disappeared from his face and from his actions...” Bashmachkin does not part with his dream for a single day. He thinks about it like another person thinks about love, about family. So he orders himself a new overcoat, “... his existence has somehow become fuller...” The description of the life of Akaki Akakievich is permeated with irony, but there is also pity and sadness in it. Introducing us into the spiritual world of the hero, describing his feelings, thoughts, dreams, joys and sorrows, the author makes it clear what a happiness it was for Bashmachkin to acquire an overcoat and what a disaster its loss turns into.
There was no happier person than Akaki Akakievich when the tailor brought him an overcoat. But his joy was short-lived. When he was returning home at night, he was robbed. And none of those around him takes part in his fate. In vain did Bashmachkin seek help from a “significant person.” He was even accused of rebelling against his superiors and “higher ones.” The upset Akaki Akakievich catches a cold and dies.
In the finale, a small, timid person, driven to despair by the world of the powerful, protests against this world. Dying, he “blasphemes” and utters the most terrible words that follow the words “your excellency.” It was a riot, albeit in a dying delirium.
It is not because of the overcoat that the “little man” dies. He becomes a victim of bureaucratic “inhumanity” and “ferocious rudeness,” which, as Gogol argued, lurks under the guise of “refined, educated secularism.” This is the deepest meaning of the story.
The theme of rebellion finds expression in the fantastic image of a ghost that appears on the streets of St. Petersburg after the death of Akaki Akakievich and takes off the overcoats of the offenders.
N.V. Gogol, who in his story “The Overcoat” for the first time shows the spiritual stinginess and squalor of poor people, but also draws attention to the ability of the “little man” to rebel and for this purpose introduces elements of fantasy into his work.
N.V. Gogol deepens the social conflict: the writer showed not only the life of the “little man”, but also his protest against injustice. Even if this “rebellion” is timid, almost fantastic, the hero stands for his rights, against the foundations of the existing order.
Dostoevsky “Crime and Punishment” Marmeladov
The writer himself noted: “We all came out of Gogol’s “Overcoat.”
Dostoevsky’s novel is imbued with the spirit of Gogol’s “The Overcoat” "Poor people And". This is a story about the fate of the same “little man”, crushed by grief, despair and social lack of rights. The correspondence of the poor official Makar Devushkin with Varenka, who has lost her parents and is being pursued by a pimp, reveals the deep drama of the lives of these people. Makar and Varenka are ready to endure any hardship for each other. Makar, living in extreme need, helps Varya. And Varya, having learned about Makar’s situation, comes to his aid. But the heroes of the novel are defenseless. Their rebellion is a “revolt on their knees.” Nobody can help them. Varya is taken away to certain death, and Makar is left alone with his grief. The lives of two beautiful people are broken, crippled, shattered by cruel reality.
Dostoevsky reveals the deep and strong experiences of “little people”.
It is interesting to note that Makar Devushkin reads “The Station Agent” by Pushkin and “The Overcoat” by Gogol. He is sympathetic to Samson Vyrin and hostile to Bashmachkin. Probably because he sees his future in him.
F.M. told about the fate of the “little man” Semyon Semyonovich Marmeladov. Dostoevsky on the pages of the novel "Crime and Punishment". One after another, the writer reveals to us pictures of hopeless poverty. Dostoevsky chose the dirtiest part of strictly St. Petersburg as the location for the action. Against the backdrop of this landscape, the life of the Marmeladov family unfolds before us.
If in Chekhov the characters are humiliated and do not realize their insignificance, then in Dostoevsky the drunken retired official fully understands his uselessness and uselessness. He is a drunkard, an insignificant person from his point of view, who wants to improve, but cannot. He understands that he has doomed his family, and especially his daughter, to suffering, he worries about this, despises himself, but cannot help himself. “To pity! Why pity me!” Marmeladov suddenly screamed, standing up with his hand outstretched... “Yes! There’s nothing to pity me for! Crucify me on the cross, not pity him! But crucify him, judge, crucify him, and, having crucified him, have pity on him!”
Dostoevsky creates the image of a real fallen man: Marmelad’s annoying sweetness, clumsy florid speech - the property of a beer tribune and a jester at the same time. Awareness of his baseness (“I am a born beast”) only strengthens his bravado. He is disgusting and pathetic at the same time, this drunkard Marmeladov with his florid speech and important bureaucratic bearing.
The mental state of this petty official is much more complex and subtle than that of his literary predecessors - Pushkin's Samson Vyrin and Gogol's Bashmachkin. They do not have the power of self-analysis that Dostoevsky's hero achieved. Marmeladov not only suffers, but also analyzes his state of mind; as a doctor, he makes a merciless diagnosis of the disease - the degradation of his own personality. This is how he confesses in his first meeting with Raskolnikov: “Dear sir, poverty is not a vice, it is the truth. But...poverty is a vice - p. In poverty you still retain all the nobility of your innate feelings, but in poverty no one ever does... for in poverty I am the first to be ready to insult myself.”
A person not only dies from poverty, but understands how spiritually he is becoming empty: he begins to despise himself, but does not see anything around him to cling to that would keep him from the disintegration of his personality. The ending of Marmeladov’s life is tragic: on the street he was run over by a dandy gentleman’s carriage drawn by a pair of horses. Throwing himself at their feet, this man himself found the outcome of his life.
Under the writer's pen, Marmeladov becomes a tragic figure. Marmeladov’s cry - “after all, it is necessary that every person can go somewhere at least” - expresses the final degree of despair of a dehumanized person and reflects the essence of his life drama: there is nowhere to go and no one to go to.
In the novel, Raskolnikov has compassion for Marmeladov. The meeting with Marmeladov in the tavern, his feverish, delirious confession gave the main character of the novel, Raskolnikov, one of the last proofs of the correctness of the “Napoleonic idea.” But not only Raskolnikov has compassion for Marmeladov. “They’ve already felt sorry for me more than once,” Marmeladov says to Raskolnikov. The good general Ivan Afanasyevich took pity on him and accepted him into service again. But Marmeladov could not stand the test, started drinking again, drank away his entire salary, drank it all away and in return received a tattered tailcoat with a single button. Marmeladov in his behavior reached the point of losing his last human qualities. He is already so humiliated that he does not feel like a human being, but only dreams of being a human among people. Sonya Marmeladova understands this and forgives her father, who is able to help her neighbor and sympathize with someone who so needs compassion
Dostoevsky makes us feel sorry for those unworthy of pity, to feel compassion for those unworthy of compassion. “Compassion is the most important and, perhaps, the only law of human existence,” Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky believed.
Chekhov "Death of an Official", "Thick and Thin"
Later, Chekhov would draw a unique conclusion to the development of the theme; he doubted the virtues traditionally sung by Russian literature - the high moral virtues of the “little man” - a petty official. Voluntary groveling, self-abasement of the “little man” - this is the turn of the theme proposed by A.P. Chekhov. If Chekhov “exposed” something in people, then, first of all, their ability and willingness to be “small”. A person should not, does not dare, make himself “small” - this is Chekhov’s main idea in his interpretation of the theme of the “little man.” Summarizing all that has been said, we can conclude that the theme of the “little man” reveals the most important qualities of Russian literature XIX century - democracy and humanism.
Over time, the “little man,” deprived of his own dignity, “humiliated and insulted,” arouses not only compassion but also condemnation among progressive writers. “You live a boring life, gentlemen,” Chekhov said through his work to the “little man” who had come to terms with his situation. With subtle humor, the writer ridicules the death of Ivan Chervyakov, from whose lips the lackey “Yourness” has never left his lips.
In the same year as “The Death of an Official,” the story “Thick and Thin” appears. Chekhov again speaks out against philistinism, against servility. The collegiate servant Porfiry giggles, “like a Chinese,” bowing obsequiously, when he meets his former friend, who has a high rank. The feeling of friendship that connected these two people has been forgotten.
Kuprin “Garnet Bracelet”. Zheltkov
In A.I. Kuprin’s “Garnet Bracelet” Zheltkov is a “little man”. Once again the hero belongs to the lower class. But he loves, and he loves in a way that many in high society are not capable of. Zheltkov fell in love with the girl and throughout his entire life he loved only her alone. He understood that love is a sublime feeling, it is a chance given to him by fate, and it should not be missed. His love is his life, his hope. Zheltkov commits suicide. But after the death of the hero, the woman realizes that no one loved her as much as he did. Kuprin's hero is a man of an extraordinary soul, capable of self-sacrifice, able to truly love, and such a gift is rare. Therefore, the “little man” Zheltkov appears as a figure towering above those around him.
Thus, the theme of the “little man” underwent significant changes in the work of writers. Drawing images of “little people”, writers usually emphasized their weak protest, downtroddenness, which subsequently leads the “little man” to degradation. But each of these heroes has something in life that helps him endure existence: Samson Vyrin has a daughter, the joy of life, Akaky Akakievich has an overcoat, Makar Devushkin and Varenka have their love and care for each other. Having lost this goal, they die, unable to survive the loss.
In conclusion, I would like to say that a person should not be small. In one of his letters to his sister, Chekhov exclaimed: “My God, how rich Russia is in good people!”
In XX century, the theme was developed in the images of the heroes I. Bunin, A. Kuprin, M. Gorky and even at the end XX century, you can find its reflection in the works of V. Shukshin, V. Rasputin and other writers.